Welcome to 2017. Now before you quote me on the title, let’s give it some context. It’s January 2nd and you may already be behind on a resolution you set out for yourself. Let’s see, the usual resolutions – lose weight, get places on time, be nicer, cook/eat better, read more, blah blah blah. It’s almost the same for everyone that makes resolutions, so for one, be original and think of specific goals that you want for yourself. But secondly, give yourself a break. And that is what I mean by cheat a little. Our parents are amazing people who worked and cooked everyday without all the technologies that we have. We are living in a microwave generation of “must have it now,” which is awesome, for someone who is impatient, but I really have to think if we are doing a disservice to ourselves. I remember the days of having to call the radio station, set up the tape player on record (with the pause button down), and listen ALLLL day to record a certain song. When you got a mixed tape in the 90s, it was nothing but love, because that literally could take weeks to make. And if you wanted the playlist in a certain order . . .forget about it! Now we can download a song in seconds or just pull up YouTube and fulfill that craving.

It is 2017 and things are the way they are. We are not our parents generation. Good or bad, we need to accept that and still get things done. We need to stop feeling bad that after working a 40-60 hour week, we just don’t have time to prepare a 4 course meal everyday. We need to not set ourselves up for failure with 10 resolutions that will become a wash after March 1st.

So, that’s where the cheating comes in:

READ MORE: If you want to read more but don’t have time, get an audio book (Check out audible.com for a monthly fee or Overdrive.com which connects with your library card). They are lifesavers. If you spend 30 minutes commuting to work each day, 5 days a week, with vacation and holidays, you can read 112 hours worth of books on your daily commute. If a book is 5 hours long, that’s 22 books! And if you are in school, imagine if you could study material while commuting. This is another reason to take the train or public transportation. (Safety Disclaimer: Please make sure you are listening to your surroundings. Headphones are not a reason to forget about the world around you).

COOK MORE/EAT HEALTHY: No time to cook a healthy meal from scratch? Forget microwave meals with tons of sodium. Make dump meals!! Get yourself a recipe book or just google some recipes. They are super simple and you are basically just dumping ingredients into a dish and throwing it in the oven. Yes, it requires some planning to go get the meals, but if you keep cooked chicken/beef chopped up in the freezer and can just thaw it out, dump it in a casserole dish with some rice, broccoli, and broth, and bake it while doing the dishes, you are saving money, eating healthy, and being efficient. The casserole will last for days if you are eating solo, or good for a family. A lot of people are doing meal prep so there are tons of websites and Instagram pages dedicated to cooking once a week and prepping your meals for the week. Stop feeling bad that you cant’ cook every day. Suck it up, and realize that it’s just not going to happen, and think of an alternative strategy like meal prep and/or dump meals.

WORK OUT MORE: Ok, the infamous promise to work out more – Most of us making resolutions to go to the gym don’t enjoy going there. If we did, it wouldn’t be a resolution. So decide if you want to keep that $50/month membership or if you can work out alternatively. Get a fitness partner to keep you accountable and keep a gym bag with everything you need (towel, gym shorts, tank top, sports bra [ladies], deodorant, lotion, work clothes, flip flops, combination lock, BPA-free water bottle) in your car. If you want to start running, download the “Couch to 5K” app or keep yourself accountable with the “30 Day Fitness” or many more apps available for your mobile device. The main theme is decide what you really want to do. If you say you want to work out more but you just “can’t” then QUIT (reverse psychology . ..don’t actually quit). Make it hard NOT to complete your goal by setting yourself up for success. There’s nothing wrong with Zumba at home.

GET PLACES ON TIME: The reason most of us are late is . . . . because we left late. I’m just being honest. Now, it sounds simple to say ‘Well, just leave earlier’ but what happens is that you know you have more time so you sing one more song in the shower, hit the snooze button one more time, stop to pick up flowers or the birthday card/gift you should have gotten yesterday. I can give you 100 more reasons. So, cheat! Put the time in your phone as 30 minutes ahead of the time and destroy any other evidence showing otherwise. Add 20 minutes to the map directions. Buy everything at least 1 day before the event. Volunteer to be the carpool driver. Iron your clothes the day before. Old habits die hard on this one.

This year, give yourself permission to get things done, even if it’s not the long tedious way. Do not take shortcuts when it counts (i.e. using 3 nails instead of 5 on walls when building a house), but if it doesn’t matter if you read the book or listen to the book and you get the same outcome, consider saving yourself some headache and setting yourself up for success.

Thanks for reading! Happy New Year!

*Photo taken on Ocean Drive in Miami, FL

***No paid endorsements. These are sites and tips I found helpful, and just want to share. Tons more can be found online**